Beginner Large Format: Ebony or Chamonix?

[gmfotografie]

hi my friends,

actually i'm photographing b&w landscapes with a hasselblad 501cm. for color i want to shoot large format 4x5 with fuji velvia 50.

i can get a used ebony rws45( near mint) with 10 film casettes and an Schneider Symmar-S 5.6/150 for 1200€.

the other posibility is to buy a new chamonix which gives me more felxibility for using larger lenses but will be more expensive.


(with my digital fullframe equipment i used to shoot with 24mm and 100-150mm lenses)

what can you suggest me? should i buy the ebony? can you suggest the schneider symmar s lens for a start?

best michael

[Daniel Stone]

Symmar-S lenses are fine
no need to look further IMO, even if you're shooting color, unless you have a "need" for the latest tech. aka "splitting hairs" on most points, technically


I'd personally go for the Chamonix. Super light, and if you should decide to expand your lens capabilities(especially if you decide to go longer than 150mm), the Chamonix will be more versatile IMO.
I owned one briefly(a 045N-2) earlier this year, and it was a great little camera.

film holders are cheap, even in the EU from what it seems. Not as cheap as here in the USA, but if you look carefully and watch ebay, you can get lucky

buy(and shoot!) more film, that way your technique will get better faster, and you'll learn by making mistakes.

KEEP YOUR "BAD" SHOTS. Put sticky notes on them so you have references to how you exposed & developed it(normal, +/-, etc..) so you can reference them easily.

welcome to the LF club!

-Dan

[Tim Meisburger]

To me the Ebony seems the better deal, and a better camera for landscape, but I think you will probably want a wider lens, as the 150 is a longish normal lens on 4x5.

[Regular Rod]

hi my friends,

actually i'm photographing b&w landscapes with a hasselblad 501cm. for color i want to shoot large format 4x5 with fuji velvia 50.

i can get a used ebony rws45( near mint) with 10 film casettes and an Schneider Symmar-S 5.6/150 for 1200€.

the other posibility is to buy a new chamonix which gives me more felxibility for using larger lenses but will be more expensive.


(with my digital fullframe equipment i used to shoot with 24mm and 100-150mm lenses)

what can you suggest me? should i buy the ebony? can you suggest the schneider symmar s lens for a start?

best michael

What are the important criteria to you? Is it weight? Cost? Ruggedness? Ease and speed of set up? You might prefer to get a folding camera if you are back packing with your gear. The RWS 45 is a non-folding camera made for Robert White Photographic Ltd. They offer it as a low cost entry to 4x5. The price you have been offered is very good if the camera, lens and 10 film holders are indeed near mint. Can you handle the camera before buying it?

RR

[dave_whatever]

Speaking as someone with both a RSW45 and a Chamonix, the Ebony would probably be easier to learn with because you've only got front tilt and rise to worry about, the camera is an utter joy to use and setup time is virtually zero. It packs down slightly larger than the chamonix but of course you can keep the lens attached on the ebony so its about the same overall. Weight is more or less the same for both models. You can use a 210mm on the ebony with a tophat panels, but longer non-tele lenses become a pain on even longer tophats. A fuji 300mm f/8 Tele will also work on the Ebony with a slight tophat board. Where the chamonix wins is using longer lenses more easily and more movements, but that of course comes with a longer and more fiddly setup, and more to go wrong, for example if you forget to zero any of the movements which you're not using at any particular time. The stock focussing screen on the Ebony is probably better than the chamonix, depending which model chamonix you buy (for example the 045F1 doesn't come with a fresnel).

I would say if you're sure you won't want to shoot longer lenses much in the next couple of years then the Ebony is the best one to go for, its basically foolproof and a work of art in itself.

[Jim Becia]

I will agree with Dan on this one even though I own three Ebony cameras and think they are the best. My (your) concern is the lack of any versatility with that version of Ebony. With only 190 mm of bellows, you are limited in using even a 150 when doing something close up. While I think Ebonys are great, that particular model is very restricting, at least in my view.

[Peter De Smidt]

I've used the Ebony and owned a Chamonix. I would go with the Ebony. It'll be easier to use for someone just starting out.
Oops. I missed the "s" in the title. I used and RW45. I agree with Dan and Jim that the short bellows would be pretty limiting.

[Kirk Gittings]

If you can afford it buy the Ebony. Not only a good camera for beginners but seasoned professionals who want simplicity, quality and don't shoot with really long lenses-which I don't. The short bellows can be mitigated by the use of top hat lens boards and/or the use of a 120 roll film back for your long shots. In conjunction with your Hassy and a 4x5 roll film back and top hat lens boards, it is very likely the only 4x5 camera you will ever need.

[Kevin Crisp]

The Symmar S lenses comes in two types; one is multicoated and one is single coated. I'd go for the multicoated ones all other things being equal. If it doesn't say "multicoated" on the lens barrel, it isn't.

[Jim Noel]

To me the Ebony seems the better deal, and a better camera for landscape, but I think you will probably want a wider lens, as the 150 is a longish normal lens on 4x5.

150mm is not a "Longish Normal lensfor 4x5." It is actually slightly shorter than the diagonal of the film (162.5mm) thus is slightly shorter than normal. However, the 150 has been considered normal for this format since about the 1960's.